There have long been rumors that the world would end in December 2012. Some people dismissed this as silly nonsense, but others really cared about it. Some people built bomb shelters to flee into, others wrote their wills. A discovery by scientist Saturno in Xultun, Guatemala, was proof that 2012 would not be the year the world would end. At least not according to the Mayan calendar.
The world would end in 2012
For years it was thought that the world would end in 2012. After all, the Mayan calendar stopped abruptly in December 2012. Many panicked and anxiously awaited the dreaded date. Some even went so far as to build bomb shelters or write up their wills. The world watched with anticipation as the date approached and when the time came,… nothing happened!
An important discovery
An American archaeological group led by scientist Saturno had already made an important archaeological discovery in May 2012. At the Xultun site in Guatemala, scientists had discovered the oldest known Mayan astronomical calendar in a recently excavated home. The inscriptions were carved into the wall of the house by a Mayan scribe in the 9th century. Many of the carvings are engraved numbers representing calculations related to the various Mayan calendars. This concerns the ceremonial calendar of 260 days, the solar calendar of 365 days, the annual cycle of Venus and that of 780 days of the planet Mars. There are also a number of characters to see.
Xultun, Guatemala
Xultun is a Mayan settlement in northern Guatemala, hidden in the Petén rainforest. More than 10,000 people once lived here. The site was discovered 100 years ago by a Guatemalan worker. Some rough notes were made of it in the 1920s by a certain Sylvanus Morley. It was also he who assigned the name ,Xultun, to the site. Xultun is located just eight kilometers from San Bartolo, where Saturno had already discovered important and rare murals in 2001.
The house in Xultun
The dwelling in the settlement of relevant home. They discovered three walls with important inscriptions and a number of figures: a northern, a western and an eastern wall. It is a miracle that these inscriptions and drawings, mainly in red, black and white colors, have survived the centuries. Next to a number of figures are also the inscriptions ,Younger Borther Obsidian, and ,Older Brother Obsidian,.
2012, the end of the world?
This important discovery made it clear that the Maya were not calculating the end of the world at all. On the contrary, they sought assurance that nothing would change and that the world would continue to turn. After all, their calculations continue for about 7,000 years.
Knowing more?
If you want to read more about this find, you can read the June 2012 issue of National Geographic. Interested people can take a look at the National Geographic site or the Science Daily site.
What is certain is that everyone can now sleep soundly again. The end of the world was not before 2012, at least not according to the Mayans! Doom thinkers will now have to come up with something else to worry humanity!